


Under Pressure (Secrets Cannot Hide)

by secondalto



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Bruce Banner Needs a Hug, Bruce Feels, Darcy Lewis is Tony Stark's Daughter, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-03
Updated: 2014-09-03
Packaged: 2018-02-16 01:41:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2251206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/secondalto/pseuds/secondalto
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darcy likes Bruce. Bruce likes Darcy. Neither one says anything until they are forced into a situation beyond their control.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Under Pressure (Secrets Cannot Hide)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [y3llowdaisi3s](https://archiveofourown.org/users/y3llowdaisi3s/gifts).



> for y3llowdaisi3s. I hope this fits the bill

Her father was a billionaire, yet Darcy’s mom still made her do chores, go to public school and work part-time if Darcy wanted to buy her own things. Her step-dad said it was to build character. She wasn’t sure she believed him, but loved it despite herself.

Darcy knew the man whose DNA she carried. She knew how he and mom met. She knew he wanted to do right by her mom when she found out about Darcy. But Darcy also knew it was for the best that his name didn’t appear on her birth certificate.

That’s what happened when you were the only child (so far) of Tony Stark.

Tony was involved in Darcy’s life and not just financially. They e-mail, have bi-weekly phone calls (when Pepper reminds him) and Skype for the big occasions. He’s there for her a lot. Pepper was like a second mother and JARVIS was another sibling; the wise and deceivingly snarky older brother to balance her two younger step-bros.

Tony tried to steer her to MIT and other colleges but couldn’t complain when she chose Culver. She was devastated when he was captured but managed to keep it under wraps. Pepper kept her updated. When he came back one of the first thing he did was call her. Darcy wished she could have been there for him but Tony insisted that she stay and continue her course work. Everyone was watching months later when he announced “I am Iron Man.” Darcy called him later that night.

“Really, Tony? A superhero?”

He snorted. “Gotta do something with thing in my chest other than use it as a nightlight. Besides how many girls can say their dad is a superhero?”

She rolled her eyes. “I can’t say that, Tony. It’s still a secret that I’m your daughter.”

“Oh, yeah, right. I gotta go, Pep’s about to break down the door to remind me to eat.”

“Bye, Tony.”

*~*~*~*

After the third time Tony nearly died, Darcy was beginning to think he needed a keeper. Someone other than Pepper who could keep him in line. So when he asked her and Jane (mostly Jane) to come to the Tower, Darcy pushed for a yes. She was happy to be closer to Tony. After a phone call to her mom to assure her that Darcy wasn’t dead, she settled into a routine fairly quickly.

She also got to meet some of the rest of the team. Steve was a gorgeous specimen of a man, but pining for someone. Peggy probably. (Or if the internet rumors were to be believed, Bucky Barnes.) Thor was back in Asgard for now, dealing with his crazy-ass brother. Jane was still looking for a way to reopen the bridge. The two super spies, as Tony called them, were off somewhere. Darcy gathered that something happened to Clint before the big battle and Natasha was helping him through it.

She didn’t get to meet Bruce until she and Jane were in the Tower for a month. She’d been helping Jane – and getting paid for it – but occasionally she’d been recruited to help Tony. He only tried once to get her to call him dad. Darcy was leaving Tony’s lab with some papers she’d finally gotten him to sign when she bumped into someone. She clutched the papers closer to her chest and almost tripped. But a pair of strong hands were at her waist and she looked up into eyes the color of her favorite mocha.

“Oh! Sorry, I didn’t see you there,” she apologized. “You must be Bruce.”

He smiled and Darcy felt a little weak at the knees. “I am.” He let go of her waist once she was steady on her feet again. “And you are?”

Darcy moved the files to one arm and offered a hand. “Darcy Lewis. Jane’s assistant. I occasionally help Tony out. If you ever need chicken scratch notes typed up or something, I’m your gal. I read genius scientist.” She was babbling.

She knew she was babbling. But Darcy’s had a crush on Bruce Banner since she started at Culver. A significant portion of the entire school did, trying to get into one of his classes because of his looks. She couldn’t blame them, because up close? Oh boy. Darcy was glad she’d managed to keep the babble to a minimum.

“I might take you up on that,” he said, smiling again. “Tony still in there?” He pointed to the lab.

“Yeah, go on in,” she replied.

“Nice to meet you, Darcy,” Bruce answered and walked into Tony’s lab.

Darcy followed his movements. Then she shook herself and left the hall. He was too old for her. Maybe. He was Tony’s BFF, according to Tony. She couldn’t afford to let her silly crush become more than that. Maybe Jane would be up for a girl’s night in tonight. This called for ice-cream and alcohol.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Bruce’s first meeting with Darcy hadn’t gone perfectly. But the next time he saw her, she was offering him a cup of his favorite tea. He’d heard a lot of good things about Darcy from Tony. Tony had been trying to persuade him to come back to live and work at the Tower full time. If Bruce didn’t know that Tony and Pepper were completely committed to each other, he would have sworn Tony had a crush.

He took the cup from her and had a sip. Just how he liked it. “Thanks, this is perfect.”

“I make it a point to know what everyone likes,” Darcy said, smiling. “So, other than providing the perfect beverage, what can I do for you, Doc?”

Her smile lit up her whole face, making it radiant. Bruce could see why anyone might fall for Darcy. But he was fairly determined he wouldn’t be one of them. A part of him still loved Betty, yes, but he couldn’t – shouldn’t – allow himself to love again. Not with the Other Guy around. Instead he took another sip of tea and gestured to a desk across the room that had a small pile of files and papers sitting on top of it.

“You said you read genius scientist,” he offered.

“I did and I do,” she said, grinning. “What do you want done with it all?”

“It all needs to be in the system, I’ve marked which files and such with Post-Its.”

“Not a problem. Hope you don’t mind if I listen to my tunes while I do this. I promise to keep it down to a dull roar. Just yell if it gets too loud.” She took out her iPod and tucked the earbuds into her ears before going over to the desk.

Bruce returned to his work. Occasionally he’d look up and find himself staring at Darcy as she mouthed the words to whatever song she was listening too. Maybe an extra-long meditation session would help him focus. He was going to need it because transcribing the files was going to take Darcy a while.

*~*~*~*~*

Working for Bruce wasn’t as bad as it could have been, Darcy thought. She had her own desk, he let her listen to her music and every once in a while he even let JARVIS pipe in a playlist or two while they worked. If she found herself looking at him every ten (fuck it, five) minutes, it wasn’t anybody’s business but hers.

Bruce was also better at self-care than either Tony or Jane. He’d have lunch or whatever meal delivered. He’d even get enough to share and eventually learned her favorites. He’d know when to extract himself from arguments with Tony, just at the tiniest bits of green started to appear.

“If you keep doing things like that,” she commented one day, “What are you going to need me for?”

He chuckled. “I still need you to read my writing. I think you read it better than I do, Darcy.”

“At least you don’t write random equations with lots of numbers and letters that I have to ask about. I swear, between Tony and Jane, I think I’m learning enough about physics and engineering to get two more degrees.”

“Not in Biochemistry?” Bruce teased.

“Nope. I just kind of breeze through your notes, Doc. It’s easy even if you do use really big words. There are times I’m tempting to bust out the online dictionary to find out what the hell you’re talking about,” she said.

“You could just ask me, you know,” he said with a smile. “And you can call me Bruce.”

Darcy’s heart went a little wobbly at that notion. Calling Bruce by his first name was… intimate. Sort of. She wasn’t sure she was ready for that. But he smiled crookedly and she was done for.

“Sure, Bruce,” she replied, hoping that she was the only one who’d heard the slight wobble in her voice.

After that, things carried on as normal. Until they didn’t.

*~*~*~*~*~

It was a sunny Wednesday afternoon when it happened.

Darcy was transcribing Bruce’s latest pile of notes because Jane was knee deep in equations and Tony was working on his suit. JARVIS was piping in one of her more mellow playlists. Bruce may have been humming along. He wasn’t going to admit this aloud, but he would occasionally ask JARVIS to play it when Darcy wasn’t here. It made it feel like she was. And the music wasn’t half bad.

Darcy was half-singing, half-humming, shimmying a little in her chair. Bruce did everything he could to ignore her. The Other Guy was sitting in the back of his brain, feeling… smug? Bruce shook his head and tried to concentrate on the formula he was currently working on. The next time he looked up, Darcy was looking at him.

“What?” he asked.

“You just look really happy, Bruce.” Hearing his name from her lips was intoxicating.

He shrugged, doodling absently in his notes. “I just… this is nice. Just us, listening to music, no threats or anything.”

Darcy smiled and looked like she was going to say something when it happened. The alarms started blaring, the warning lights flashed and JARVIS’s voice echoed through the room.

“UNKNOWN ENEMY DETECTED IN CENTRAL PARK. AVAILABLE AVENGERS ASSEMBLE.”

Bruce sighed. “Looks like I spoke to soon. I should go see if I’m… we’re needed.”

He started for the door but then there was the ominous click of the locks on the lab doors. Then the locks on the windows snicked into place.

“ENEMIES HEADING FOR THE TOWER. IMMEDIATE LOCKDOWN INNITIATED.”

Bruce cursed softly under his breath and turned back to see Darcy standing up behind the desk with wide eyes.

“Um… Bruce? Are you doing okay over there, cause I gotta say, you’re looking a little like my Christmas tree.”

The Other Guy had been ready to assemble, to smash. Bruce looked away from Darcy, took several deep breaths and looked up again. There was a small containment room off to the side, but he had to go past her to get to it. He wasn’t sure that he could hold on long enough to do it. When he spoke next, he was fairly sure his voice was deeper than it usually was.

“Darcy, move.”

She stared for a moment before shuffling back and out of his way. He practically ran past her and into the containment room. The door slid shut behind him. He heard the lock click, breathing a little easier now that he knew Darcy would be safe.

“I’d forgotten that was here,” Darcy said. She was standing on the opposite side of the reinforced glass door. “Looking a little less green there, Bruce. Way to go!” She gave him a thumbs up. “I’ll put on a kettle, make some tea.”

“That would be…,” Bruce took a breath, willing the Other Guy to back down. “Wonderful thank you.”

Darcy didn’t leave right away. She stood there, appraising him. “You tell Big Green that he needs to go away. I like this lab and I really don’t want it smashed. If he likes, I can find something for him to destroy later. I think Jane has a few machines she hates enough that she won’t mind them gone. He can smash to his hearts content then.”

“Darcy…,” he started. But, the Other Guy seemed to pay attention. There was the feeling of a grunt of assent then he melted to the back of Bruce’s consciousness. “Huh. He’s settled down. How did you do that?”

“I figured the promise of destruction later would do it,” she shrugged. “Besides, I figure we won’t be here that long. I’m sure Steve and Tony and everyone will have this wrapped up in no time at all.”

Bruce nodded. She wandered off to put the kettle on and he waited to be sure the Other Guy was calm. Then he punched in a code to let the containment door unlock, leaving the room and following Darcy. Neither of them could know how wrong her prediction would be.

*~*~*~*~*

Hour four of the lockdown found them sharing left over Thai and talking about the current situation in the Middle East.

Hour nine had Bruce pushing Darcy towards the lone cot in the lab and urging her to get some kind of sleep. He promised to wake her if the lockdown ended or if he felt that he needed help keeping the Other Guy at bay again.

Hour fifteen included a rousing game of “I Spy” and an argument over whether test tubes were clear or opaque.

By time they were on the twenty third hour of lockdown, Bruce was seriously on edge. This was the most time he had ever spent with Darcy. Granted, he really liked her – maybe even had a crush on her – but this was not how he’d wanted to spend time with her. Yes, it was an unusual situation, one he never hoped to find himself in again, but he was beginning to wonder about his sanity.

“Oh Dear GOD,” Darcy groaned. “What is taking them so long?” She slumped over a table, resting her head on her arms.

Bruce sighed and rubbed at his temple. “JARVIS said it should be soon.”

“That’s what he said _three hours ago_ ,” she whined.

“I know,” he replied, walking over to her and laying a comforting hand on her back. She sat up and he kept his hand there. She had an odd expression on her face. “What?” he asked.

She gaped. “You never touch people. Not voluntarily.”

“I think this is an extraordinary circumstance, Darcy.” He started to move his hand, but she moved back so it was still on her back. “Darce…”

“Nope. This is huge, Bruce. HUGE. And awesome. I can’t believe that I got to be here for this. It almost makes the entire lockdown worth it. I can’t…”

He needed her to stop. She’d babbled on and off for most of the lockdown, but this was a little much. All because he’d tried to comfort her. The Other Guy projected an image to him. Bruce thought it was a little impulsive. But, with Darcy, impulsive might just be the way to go. He leaned in and cut her off with a kiss.

His one hand stayed on her back, the other reached up to cup her cheek. Darcy seemed taken aback at first, then she melted into it. Her hands grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer. He stepped in, wrapping his arms around her. She sighed against his mouth and he deepened the kiss. Then as he felt her fingers toying with the buttons of his shirt, he pulled back.

She was wide-eyed and smiling, her lips red, breathing ragged. “Darcy, I…”

“No, Bruce,” she said, shaking her head. Her hands were still tangled up in his shirt. She ran them down his chest, smoothing the fabric. Her voice was soft when she spoke again. “I was wondering if I was going to have to be the one doing that,” she said. “I really like you, Bruce. And obviously you feel the same.” Her grin was broad and luminous.

“But-“

“No buts, mister. No we can’t because of Big Green. No I will hurt you. No I’m old enough to be your father.” She paused. Then her eyes got wide again and her mouth formed an ‘o’ as she let go of him. “Oh, Christ. Tony is going to kill me,” she whispered.

Bruce frowned. “Why would Tony…?” Then his mind clicked all the pieces into place. He groaned and dropped his head to the table. The similar looks, the same snark, the identical brilliance, and Tony’s glowing commentary about Darcy (which made more sense now). “Tony is your dad, right?”

“How did you…?” she gaped. “Never mind.” She rubbed his back now. “Yes, and I would appreciate it if you kept that to yourself for now. I do want to go public, but I… we, haven’t figured out how yet.”

“Secret’s safe,” he mumbled from the table.

“Good.” She pulled at his shirt and he sat back up again. “Now. Can we go back to the kissing? Cause I really liked that.”

Hour thirty four ended the lockdown. Neither of them heard the unlocking of doors and windows. But they did hear Steve clearing his throat and broke away from their kissing to see him standing red-faced in the doorway.

“So, is this something you two have been hiding?” Steve asked.

Darcy grinned. “Totally new.” Then she stood and tugged Bruce up with her. “Come on, Bruce, we are both going to shower and change clothes and then you are totally taking me to that Indian place we love because I am not counting being locked in your lab as a first date.”

Bruce just nodded and followed her out with a wry grin to Steve.

*~*~*~*~*

They managed to elude Tony, and the rest of the team, as they left the Tower. Bruce kept waiting for a phone call or for Tony to drop by the restaurant in full gear, but it never happened. Bruce didn’t see Tony the next day either. Or the next. But on the third day after the lockdown, Tony managed to corner him in the labs.

“So,” he drew out the word, idly toying with the equipment. “You and Darcy?”

“I guess so,” Bruce answered honestly. “Look, Tony, I know…”

Tony held up a hand. “Bruce. Please.” He stepped closer, shaking his head. “I may have contributed to the DNA that is Darcy but I am nowhere near qualified to give you the kind of talk that fathers should give. That right belongs to Michael.” Tony sighed, looking sad. “Somehow, she’s managed to become a responsible and wonderful grown woman. Much to my dislike. But she makes her own choices and you are one of them.”

“Tony, really…”

“No, Brucey, let me finish. I don’t think you can appreciate how hard it is for me to come down here and say this.” Bruce could, he knew Tony didn’t deal with feelings really well. “All that I ask is that you treat her well, make her happy and please, by all that is holy, make an honest woman of her before you make me a grandfather.”

Then he turned to leave the room. He paused, turned back and grimaced. Bruce thought it was an interesting look.

“And please don’t make me a grandfather until Pep and I have at least one kid.”

The second statement didn’t go as hoped. Bruce and Darcy welcomed their daughter the same day Tony and Pepper welcomed a son. Darcy absolutely didn’t comment about having a brother the same age as her own child. (She totally did.)


End file.
